Early start to winter: Ledge Route, Ben Nevis

Winter has arrived early this year, and Candice, Aileen and myself were on Ledge Route on Ben Nevis, making the most of the snow and sunshine.
Candice and Aileen have come over from Singapore, so the cold temperatures came as a bit of shock for them, however, they were expecting wet and windy conditions whilst visiting Scotland, so they can't really complain!

The snow is down to about 500m, but with it being soft and unconsolidated, there was no need for an axe or crampons for our ascent of Ledge Route today. There is a surprising amount of ice forming down the drainage lines, which is quite amazing to see for this time of year. The crags are well rimed, but with this being the first cold snap, there will still be plenty of loose rock about.

We made good progress up the snow-covered crest of Ledge Route, and were soon joining the mountain path, which has become quite slippery and even icy in places as the snow has been compressed with the passing of many walkers. We wandered over to the summit before descending the mountain path.

With the cold conditions set to continue, we could see some ice climbing in November, but I won't be counting my chickens just yet.